After the Silence: A New Beginning
by moviemom44
Summary: ...because NOBODY was satisfied with the original ending of 'Without a Sound'. Am I right? This time Syd and Gage get it right, and almost get it on. Didn't want to resort to an 'M' rating. A one-shot that got so long it is presented in three parts.
1. Chapter 1

Author's Note: This story is really an alternate ending for the episode 'Without a Sound." If you are a fan of the show, it's likely you are familiar with this one, in which Gage loses his hearing and he and Sydney become closer as she helps him cope with the challenges he must face as a deaf person. You are probably also familiar with the thoroughly UNSATISFYING ending, in which Sydney makes a rather awkward confession about her feelings for him, but because he is still under anesthesia—from surgery to repair his hearing—when she tells him, we never really know for sure if he hears her. AAAAARRRRGGH! In pure fan fiction style, this story seeks to conquer the frustration by answering the questions 'Did he hear her or didn't he?' and 'What happened after that?'

* * *

After the Silence: A New Beginning

By

Moviemom44

_After the initial celebration for his restored hearing winds down and Trivette, Walker and Alex leave, Gage asks Sydney to stay a while longer. He wants to talk some more, because it feels so good to be able to hear again after all those weeks of silence…_

"OK, I can stay a while, I guess. What do you want to talk about?" Sydney asked, sitting back down on the edge of the bed.

"I don't know. Anything. I guess I don't really want to talk as much as I want to listen. I want to listen to the sound of your voice. I never thought I'd say this, but I really missed listening to you grumble at me about taking too long to finish my paperwork, or complain about my lousy cooking, or tease me about my taste in movies, or—"

"OK! OK! I get it. Fine, I'll talk," she snapped. But she didn't say anything. She only looked at him with sad eyes.

"Syd?" he prodded, gently.

No response.

"Is that all you missed? The bad stuff?" she finally asked, her voice small and full of hurt.

He saw that there were tears in her eyes. Oh, hell. He hadn't meant it like that, but it didn't matter. That was what she had heard—_the bad stuff_. He needed to turn that frown upside down.

So he tickled her. He wrapped one arm tightly around her waist, clamping her against his side. Then he found her most vulnerable tickle spot—her two bottom ribs—with the fingers of his other hand.

She shrieked with uncontrolled laughter and struggled to get away. Unable to get a foothold because her legs were too short to reach the floor, she could only twist her body to try to break his hold on her. She turned to face him, effectively blocking his access to her ribcage.

His onslaught stopped immediately, but her laughter continued until he moved his tickling hand to her chin, directing her face toward his. She'd ended up lying across his body, gulping for air. With every breath she took, her breasts brushed against his chest. Now he was having trouble breathing.

One quick lift of his head from the pillow and he could close the tiny distance between them. He could, once and for all, know what it would be like to kiss her, for real, not as part of some undercover assignment. But first, he had something he needed to say.

"Your laugh, Syd, that's what I missed hearing the most. I love your laugh. It's like music, and it's very, very sexy." His voice had dropped in both pitch and volume as he spoke until 'sexy' was only a hoarse whisper.

In the end, his head never left the pillow; she lowered her lips to his and kissed him like the lover he always dreamed she'd be. Hot, sweet and wet, her mouth joined with his in a sensational kiss that promised even greater delights. Wrapping his arms around her, he hauled her the rest of the way onto the bed, turning her so that her lithe body pressed against the length of his.

She moved to capture his mouth with hers again, but stopped when he placed his index finger against her lips. Resting his forehead on hers, his gray-blue eyes glittering with desire, he begged, "Tell me again, Syd. Say what you said right before I opened my eyes."

"You mean about the hole in your sock?" she teased. She knew perfectly well what he meant.

"No, you goof, before that. I want you to say it again knowing I'll hear you." As he spoke, he dusted tiny kisses along her eyelids, her temples, the corners of her mouth. "Please, Syd, do it."

In that bed, in that moment, he could have asked her to dance naked down the middle of the George W. Bush Turnpike and she'd have done it—with bells on. So, looking directly into his eyes, she repeated what she'd told him word for word.

"Gage, there are some things I wanted to tell you, things I should have told you when you could actually hear me say them. I love your voice. I just love the sound of your voice. Every morning when I wake up, I can't wait to hear it. And every night, when I go to sleep, I wish you were there. I can't believe I never told you that. I can't believe—"

Not wanting to hear the part about his sock again, he kissed her parted lips, boldly sliding his tongue between them, exploring, tasting, savoring her. He dragged his hand down past her hip and molded his palm to the curve of her firm backside, thus inciting a riot in his loins.

Hospital gowns being what they are, Sydney couldn't miss the hard ridge of his arousal pressing against her belly. A smoky curl of lust wove its way through her very center, choking the last breath of reason from her mind, leaving her more than ready to give herself to him completely, right here, right now. Running her hand down his arm, she encountered the IV tube at his elbow, and reason flooded back in like the ocean at high tide.

She groaned as she dragged her lips from his. Fighting the urge to kiss her way along his jaw and nibble on his earlobe, she wriggled out of his arms and stood next to the bed.

"Geez, that was hard—" she confessed between shallow breaths.

"You have no idea," Gage mumbled through gritted teeth.

"Oh, but I do," she returned. For a split second her gaze lit on the fold in the blanket that wasn't really a fold in the blanket, but then focused again on his face. He was smiling through the strain.

"Come here," he urged, beckoning her to come into his arms again.

"Gage, I don't think we should—"

"Come. Here." The heat in his eyes could have melted the habit off a nun.

She'd waited too long for him to look at her that way to be able to resist him now.

"OK, here goes. But if we get caught, I'm telling them it was all your idea," she threatened as she moved into his arms. She expected him to pull her into the bed with him again, but instead he rested his hands lightly on her waist and leaned his forehead against hers.

"Syd, honey, I need you to do me a favor." His breathing had returned to normal and the fire in his eyes had downgraded from a conflagration to glowing embers.

"Lock the door?" she guessed.

He grinned appreciatively, but shook his head, which made hers wag back and forth, too.

"That did cross my mind, about a thousand times in the last ten seconds, but no. I need you to go find Dr. Clark and tell him I want to go home. Now."

She was out the door so fast he felt the breeze when it swung open. His laughter followed her all the way down the corridor.

Ten minutes later, Sydney returned with Dr. Clark in tow.

"Wow, that was quick."

"You said, 'now'." She raked him with a smoldering look and smiled inwardly when his eyes widened at her boldness.

Dr. Clark appeared to miss the exchange altogether while he studied Gage's chart.

"Ranger Cooke tells me you are anxious to leave us," the doctor stated.

"Yes, very," Gage replied earnestly.

"Well, I don't think it's wise to send you home so soon after the surgery. There could still be complications—infection or swelling, which might cause the grafts to rupture and render you deaf again. If you stay here we can continue the IV antibiotics and catch any swelling before it becomes dangerous," Dr. Clark advised.

_Two minutes sooner, Doc, and you'd have seen some VERY dangerous swelling._

"How much longer would I have to stay here?"

"If we don't see any significant swelling by tomorrow morning, you could go home tomorrow afternoon. That would also give me time to administer a hearing test to verify that you are hearing as well as you should."

Gage glanced at Sydney and had to stifle a laugh. She looked like somebody had just licked all the red off her lollipop. Her disappointment made his heart sing. Of course, he wasn't any happier about the delay than she was, but he also didn't want to risk losing his hearing again so soon.

"OK, Doc, you talked me into one more day, but after that, I'm out of here," Gage agreed, shrugging at Sydney when she glared at him from behind Dr. Clark's back.

"I know you feel like you're ready to take on the world after what you've been through, but your body still needs a bit more time to heal properly," Dr. Clark cautioned as he took his otoscope out of his pocket and leaned in to take a look in Gage's right ear. He then walked to the other side of the bed, away from Sydney, to examine Gage's left ear.

As Dr. Clark leaned down to peak into his otoscope, he whispered, "She's waited this long for you; one more day isn't going to make much difference," and then winked as he stood up.

"Yeah, Doc, I think you're right. The longer I stay here, the sweeter my homecoming is likely to be." He was speaking to the doctor, but his gaze was locked with Sydney's. It was all he could do not to drool with anticipation, as he read the 'come hither' message in her eyes.

"I'll be back to check on you tomorrow," Dr. Clark said as he strode to the door. Laying a hand on the door handle, he called over his shoulder, "Until then, try to get some rest."

As he pulled the door shut behind him, he couldn't suppress a chuckle. He knew he was wasting his breath. As turned on as those two were, neither one of them would be getting any sleep tonight.

Sydney walked over to the bed, but Gage held up a hand to stop her, like she was a vampire and he was waving a cross.

"Hold it right there," he warned.

The hurt and rejection in her eyes nearly killed him.

"Syd, please don't take this the wrong way, but you have to go. Now."

Her big doe eyes welled up with tears.

"Oh, honey, I don't want you to go. What I want is to throw you onto the nearest flat surface and not let you up for a week, but you heard the doctor. I'm stuck here until tomorrow and if I have any hope of getting through the next twenty-four hours with even a shred of my sanity left, you cannot be in this room. Hell, even after you leave, I won't be able to think about anything but you."

She nodded and wiped the tears from her cheeks. "OK, I'll go. It helps to know you'll hate waiting as much I will. Do you think we should risk a good-bye kiss?"

"Absolutely. I'm headed for the coldest shower of my entire life as soon as you're out that door anyway."

She wasted no time gliding into his arms and pressing her lips to his. Reining in her racing libido wasn't easy, but she managed by closing her eyes and picturing the gigantic hole in his sock.

"Are you sure you're going to miss me tonight? That kiss was a little—tame."

"You have your ways of dealing with waiting and I have mine," she answered, smiling mysteriously as she backed toward the door. For her, walking backwards was a way to hold on to him, at least with her eyes, until the door finally separated them completely.

Gage, however, considered it an act of pure mercy on her part that the last vision he had of her wasn't of her exquisitely sculpted butt. Oh, it was going to be a long night.

---End Chapter 1

(Chapter 2 will be posted tomorrow and Chapter 3 the day after that. Daily updates! No waiting! Merry Christmas!)


	2. Chapter 2

After the Silence: A New Beginning -- Chapter 2

"Trivette, I'm not asking you to pay for the thing; I already did that the day before the surgery. I just need you to pick it up and get it here before Sydney arrives to pick me up," Gage urged his fellow ranger.

After the worst night of tossing and turning he'd ever spent, Gage had finally given up on sleeping altogether somewhere around five o'clock in the morning. He'd managed to wait another sixty agonizing minutes before placing his call to Trivette. He had to catch him before he left for the office, right?

"Why didn't you just take it with you when you went in for the surgery? I thought you were going to ask her as soon as you got your hearing back," Trivette inquired as he tried unsuccessfully to stifle a yawn.

"I panicked. I was afraid to jinx the surgery by putting too much stock in the outcome. Besides, I didn't really want to have a ring worth three months' salary lying around here in my pants pocket while I was unconscious," Gage admitted.

"That makes sense. You've got it, buddy. One diamond engagement ring coming right up," Trivette replied.

"Thanks, man. You're a lifesaver. She's supposed to be here around two o'clock, but if I know her, she'll be here by noon. Can you get here by eleven?"

"Somehow I don't think Sydney is the only one chomping at the bit, here."

"Guilty as charged. Tell me you blame me," Gage chided.

"No way, man. This has been a long time coming and I couldn't be happier for the two of you," Trivette responded sincerely. "I'll see you at eleven," he added, before hanging up.

-----

Trivette arrived a few minutes before eleven bearing a small black velvet box and a receipt with a very big number on it.

Gage got up from the chair he'd been sitting in watching TV and shook hands with his friend. He was dressed in jeans and a blue chambray shirt that matched his eyes.

"Looks like you're ready to blow this pop stand," Trivette remarked.

"Absolutely. I'm just waiting for Dr. Clark to do the final hearing test and then I'll be a free man."

"A free man, huh? Not for long, not if Sydney says 'yes'." Trivette grinned from ear to ear.

"You think she might not? Say 'yes', I mean," Gage shot back.

Trivette chuckled. "I guess it's a good thing you're not taking her for granted, but you can't honestly believe she'd turn you down. I should have said _when _Sydney says 'yes', because it's a lock cinch that she will. That woman has been love with you for forever."

"Well, that's just what I want with her—forever."

"In that case, you're probably going to need this," Trivette said as he produced the box and the pink copy of the sales receipt from his jacket pocket and handed them to Gage.

"I know it wasn't any of my business," he continued, "but I couldn't help noticing the receipt. Just tell me one thing, my friend. How are you going to afford the armed guard that should be following her around when she's wearing all that money on her finger?" Trivette posed, only half joking.

"I know I went a little overboard, but I also know this is exactly the ring Syd wanted. Remember that string of jewelry store robberies we worked right before I lost my hearing?"

Trivette nodded. "Yeah, they were hitting small, independent stores and all but cleaning them out."

"Well, when we did the undercover as store employees at Meyer's, she saw this ring and she admired it—a lot. She even tried it on once. I caught her doing it and she acted like it was no big deal, but I could see how much she loved it," Gage recalled as he pried the lid of the box open and showed the contents to his friend. The platinum band was set with three flawless princess cut diamonds, a larger one in the center flanked by two smaller ones, that gleamed in the room's florescent light.

Trivette whistled appreciatively, thinking that the ring's simple elegance had 'Sydney' written all over it. "Man! That is beautiful!"

"I couldn't believe it was still there when I went back to get it the other day. I was sure someone would have bought it," Gage told him excitedly.

_Like who? _Trivette wondered silently._ Oprah? The Donald?_

"Well, now that my delivery mission is accomplished, I need to get over to headquarters. Good luck, man, not that you'll need it." Trivette flashed Gage a big grin and shook his hand again.

"Thanks, Trivette, and I'll take all the luck I can get," Gage said as he stuffed the ring box in his front pocket and slid the receipt into the pocket on his shirt. "This is all happening kind of fast…for Syd and me, I think…so this whole proposal thing may not be a slam dunk. I mean, until yesterday, we were just friends and partners."

"Horse hockey," Trivette stated firmly. "You two have been more than that for a long time, you both just kept backing away from the truth. Honestly, if you had waited much longer, Walker and I were gonna lock you guys in a closet and not let you out until you had at least declared your love for each other. I said we should keep you there until you proposed, but Walker was willing to settle for just the 'I love you's'," he concluded.

Gage looked back at him with panic in his eyes.

"Oh, no, please don't tell me…" Trivette cringed.

"I never said it. I mean, not in so many words, I don't think. Did I?" Gage started pacing next to the bed, running his hand through his hair and muttering to himself.

"Well?" Trivette posed.

"Well, what?" Gage shot back, exasperated.

"Did you or did you not tell her you love her?" Trivette replied impatiently.

"He did not," came a sultry voice from the open doorway.

Both men spun around to see Sydney leaning with one shoulder against the door, her arms crossed in front of her. She wasn't smiling.

"Uhhh…Syd! Hey, come on in, we were…just…oh, boy." Gage didn't bother finishing the thought. She knew they were talking about her, which was why she wasn't smiling.

"Well, I'm outta here. Gotta go to work," Trivette said, somewhat regretful that he couldn't stick around and watch Gage try to squirm his way out of this one. "Hang in there, man," he added, clapping a hand on his friend's shoulder and shaking his head melodramatically as he moved toward the door.

"Sydney," Trivette acknowledged as he passed her.

"Jimmy," Sydney answered, her steely eyes never leaving those of her partner as she stepped into the room and closed the door.

--End Chapter 2

(I know this one was short, but this was a natural break it the action. Chapter 3, which goes up tomorrow, is as long as the first two combined.)


	3. Chapter 3

After the Silence: A New Beginning -- Chapter 3

"Now, Syd—" Gage started.

She cut him off with a glare that could have blistered paint. She advanced toward him, stopping within kissing distance of his chest. Planting both fists firmly on her hips, she tossed her head to fling her hair behind her and looked up at him determinedly.

"Well, do you?"

He wanted to be a hard ass about this, he really did. He couldn't let her think she could walk all over him any time she felt like it. So, he folded his arms across his chest and tried mightily to focus on the hard line of her clamped jaw. It worked fine, until she licked her lips.

Her pretty pink tongue peeked out and slid across her mouth, leaving a glistening trail of moisture over her deep mauve lipstick and all he could think about was how good she had tasted yesterday, how responsive her tongue had been when it moved against his.

Walk all over him? Hell, she could stomp him to smithereens if she wanted to, so long as he could wrap his lips around hers in the next ten seconds.

He gripped her shoulders and pulled her to him, all but lifting her off her feet.

"Yes!" he bit off, his breath hot against her mouth. "Yes, Syd, I love you." With that his lips crashed down on hers, devouring her hungrily as his hands wove themselves into the inky silk of her hair, anchoring her to him while he assaulted her mouth with his.

She gave a little cry of surprise, unintentionally parting her lips just enough that he took full advantage and deepened the kiss dramatically, tightening his arms around her and bringing her whole body into line with the rapidly shifting contours of his.

Sydney's head was spinning, and not just from the delicious things Gage was doing with his mouth and his hands.

_He loves me!_

It was a dream come true. No, she realized, it was _all_ of her dreams come true.

Sydney had loved Francis Gage almost from the moment she met him a little over three years ago, when they had been partnered—against his objections, she later learned—in a nine-month undercover operation to ferret out a drug lord who called himself El Leon. Over those long months they had learned a lot about each other and she had fallen more in love with him with each passing day. She loved his strength, his compassion and his boyish charm, but almost more than anything she loved him because he treated her like an equal. It hadn't taken long for him to see that while she was a rookie and a woman, she was also tough as nails, quick-thinking and more than willing to go the extra mile to do the job right. He respected her, trusted her to watch his back, listened to her ideas and followed her lead during the investigation as often as she followed his. No one—most definitely no _man_—had ever done that before.

At the moment, he was doing all kinds of things no man had ever done before, at least not with her.

His hands roamed along her rib cage, skimming up to brush the backs of his knuckles along the lower curve of her breasts, turning her nipples to aching pink pebbles that rubbed against his chest as he wrapped his arms around her again. Pressing a hand to her lower back, he drew her against the hardness between his legs. She could feel the heat of it even through his jeans and her own body responded in kind as moist warmth spread through her core.

She knew she should stop him, try to pull away, but she couldn't have done that anymore than she could have made the sun rise in the west. He loved her, what more did she need? What better reason could there be for her to give herself to him in every sense of the word?

Gage felt her surrender, recognized it for the ultimate gift that it was. It thrilled him, nearly pushing his lust past the point of no return, but he knew he wanted their first time together to be more than a hurried encounter on his hospital bed, so he eased her away from him, slowed the voracious movements of his mouth on hers and finally broke the kiss completely.

"So, am I forgiven for my little oversight?"

"Oh, yes, wholly absolved and then some," she managed to say between heaving breaths.

"Good, because that was one of my best kisses and I'd have hated to waste it on anything less than a clean slate with you."

"Hmmm," she crooned as she twined her arms around his neck. "On second thought, I'm sure there must be something else you need to make up for." Her mind raced to think of a reason to get him to try to top that last kiss.

"Really? Like what?" he asked, smiling in spite of himself. He knew once they lit the flame on a physical relationship, he and Syd would be dynamite together. Apparently, she thought so, too, if she was fishing for another kiss.

"How about leaving me standing here all coiled up inside like a watch that's been wound too tight? Got any ideas for how to fix that?"

"As a matter of fact, I do, but first isn't there something you want to say to me? Like maybe picking up the conversation where I left it before I kissed you?"

She tried to remember what happened before the kiss, she really did. But it was as if the universe came into being the instant his lips touched hers; she drew a total blank.

Not wanting to embarrass herself—or over inflate his ego—by admitting that his kiss was so exquisite it wiped out all that came before it, she tried to stall long enough to get him to just tell her what he said.

"Oh, that," she said, her voice filled with false confidence. "Are you sure you need me to say it?" She moved against him and ran her finger down his nose, across his lips and down to his chin, which she kissed lightly and then looked up at him from under her thick, dark lashes.

He knew her too well. He'd heard her use that tone during many a risky encounter with various criminals. It usually was his cue to jump into the conversation because she didn't know what to say next.

"You have no idea what I'm talking about, do you?" he asked, trying unsuccessfully to stifle the grin that betrayed his amusement—and no small amount of pride—at having literally kissed her senseless.

Instead of answering him, she lunged at him while at the same time pulling his head down. Their mouths slammed together as she brought her hands to either side of his face and feasted on his lips, nipping at his lower lip with her teeth until he parted his lips and she boldly drove her tongue deep into his warm and willing mouth.

This time Gage's senses were reeling and he gave himself up to her, allowing her free reign to touch and taste all she wanted. And she wanted a lot. By the time she broke the kiss, his heart was racing and his ears were hurting from the blood rushing through the new grafts on his eardrums.

"So, am I forgiven for my forgetfulness?" Sydney asked.

Gage managed to nod, but couldn't speak for fear that his voice would come out as a high falsetto due to the excruciating pressure in his groin. He had to move this process along or he was going to explode.

"Syd," he said when speech became possible again, "do you remember me telling you I love you?"

The moment came back to her in a flash and she relived the rush of emotion that flooded her when he said it the first time.

"Oh, yes, now I do. It was the happiest moment of my life—right up until the very next second when you kissed me like that and made me forget it!"

They both laughed.

"How about I say it again and then wait for a response this time before I kiss you?"

"Go for it, partner."

"I love you, Sydney.

"I love you, too, Gage."

His heart nearly burst on the spot, the magnitude of his reaction to hearing her say the words catching him unawares. He had loved her for as long as he'd known her. He protested her assignment as his partner that first time not because she was a rookie, but because she was the most beautiful woman he had ever seen and he was afraid he'd be so distracted by her that he'd blow the assignment, maybe even get them both killed. But as the days and weeks wore on and they got to know each other, he found that her beauty, as great as it was, paled in comparison to the quality of her soul. Her kindness, her warmth and her quirky sense of humor drew his heart to hers like a homing pigeon soaring across the miles to its roost, undaunted in its quest to return home. That's what being with Sydney felt like to him, like coming home.

Figuring he better ask his next question while he could still fight down the lump in his throat, Gage skipped the kiss he'd mentioned and instead dropped to one knee in front of her.

"I hadn't planned on doing this here, in the hospital, but maybe it's fitting since this is where everything changed for us," he said by way of preamble as he pulled the black velvet box out of his pocket.

Sydney's heart stuttered to a stop. Her breath caught and her hand flew to her chest as if to aid her in forcing the air out of her lungs.

Opening the box to reveal the diamond of her dreams, Gage asked, "Will you marry me, Sydney?"

"Yes! Oh, Gage, yes, I will marry you!" she exclaimed in a voice drenched in happy tears.

Gage was up like a shot, crushing her to him, his heart so filled with pure joy that he couldn't stop laughing even as he kissed her. He finally let her go and took her left hand in his. She held the box as he plucked the ring from its velvet nest and placed it on her finger. He raised her hand to his lips and kissed the back of it with aching tenderness.

"I promise you, Syd, I will love you all the days of my life and the last word on my lips will be your name."

"And I promise to love you like no other from now until my dying breath and even after that."

They were still kissing when Dr. Clark pushed open the door to Gage's room and strolled in, his attention glued to the medical chart in his hand.

"Well, Ranger Gage, I think—Oh!...uh…I'm sorry…I'll…uh," the doctor fumbled as the couple remained locked in one another's arms, oblivious to the world around them, let alone the man in the white coat who stood next to them stuttering awkwardly.

"A-hem!" Dr. Clark cleared his throat as loudly as he could manage.

At last, Sydney, who had been facing the door, became aware of his presence and let out a little squeak as she tried to disentangle herself from Gage's embrace.

"Syd? You OK?" Gage asked.

"Hi, Dr. Clark," Sydney called over Gage's shoulder. She spoke as though the doctor were a hundred yards away.

Gage instantly whirled around and nearly pitched forward in a dead faint. Due to the surgery on his ears, Gage's balance wasn't quite up to snuff and he staggered for a second or two until Sydney caught him and steered him to the bed where he sat down heavily.

"I'm sorry, Dr. Clark. I guess we didn't hear you come in," Sydney apologized while Gage closed his eyes and wished the room would stop spinning so he could stand up again.

Dr. Clark didn't miss much when it came to his patients, especially patients he liked as much as Gage. He had known the ranger and his partner were more involved than even they realized, so he was more pleased than surprised when he noticed the stunning engagement ring on Sydney's left hand.

"I see congratulations are in order," he said, extending a hand to Gage who had finally gained enough equilibrium to get to his feet.

"Thanks, Doc, you're the first to know since it became official," Gage replied, sliding an arm around Sydney's shoulders and smiling down at her.

"Really? Well, I'm sure you two have lots of folks to break the news to then, so let's get this hearing test done and get you out of here."

"Ready when you are, Doc."

Fifteen minutes later Dr. Clark pronounced Gage fully recovered and signed his discharge orders.

"Now, you'll just have to wait for the nurse to bring the wheelchair to take you downstairs. I'm sure you can find something to occupy yourselves for a few minutes. Good luck to both of you," Dr. Clark said, shaking Gage's hand one more time.

"Thank you, doctor, for everything," Sydney said as she gave the man with the salt and pepper beard a quick hug.

"That goes double for me, Doc," Gage added.

As Dr. Clark turned to go, Gage remembered something he wanted to ask him.

"Hey Doc, I just thought of something. Well, I've actually been thinking about this since I came in yesterday for the surgery, but I sort of got distracted by this gorgeous brunette here and I forgot about it till just now."

"I can see how she could be distracting," Dr. Clark agreed, "Do you have a question about your follow up care?"

"No, it's actually not about me. Do you know Billy Matheson? He's one of Lois' students at the Dallas School for the Deaf," Gage inquired.

"Yes, I know Billy quite well. I'm one of the physicians of record for the school and Billy is one of my patients there. Why do you ask? Is Billy alright?" The doctor was genuinely concerned for the boy's welfare.

"As far as I know, he's fine, but I was wondering if maybe this experimental surgery you did on me could help Billy, too." Gage had grown close to the ten-year-old during his stay at the school and he and Sydney had returned to visit him several times during the weeks prior to Gage's surgery.

"No, unfortunately, there is nothing modern medicine can do for Billy, at least, not yet. But as you yourself can testify, new techniques are being developed every day. Hopefully, there will be a cure for Billy's type of deafness in his lifetime," the doctor replied solemnly.

"You say that like his lifetime is almost over," Sydney noted.

"Billy's story isn't really mine to tell, but suffice it to say that he's had it rough since even before he was born. He's a very special kid who's been through more heartache in his short time on this planet than most people face in their whole lives and yet he's one of the most well-adjusted, engaging people I've ever met. There's not a bitter bone in that boy's body; he's always got a smile or a hug to give to the other kids when they get down. I'm glad you've taken an interest in him, and I'm sorry I can't do more to help him."

"Don't sweat it, Doc. I was just curious. I like Billy a lot, just the way he is," Gage said.

"Me, too," Sydney added.

A pretty red-haired nurse with sparkling green eyes arrived just then to give Gage the standard hospital send-off, a completely unnecessary ride in a wheelchair. Dr. Clark went out as she came in pushing the chair.

"Hey, is it against hospital policy for my fiancée to sit on my lap while you wheel me out of here?"

"Gage!" Sydney snapped as she and the young nurse both blushed.

"What? I figure if I have to ride in this thing, I might as well enjoy it," Gage explained with a shrug.

"Actually, the only time anybody rides double in one of these is when it's a mom and her baby leaving the maternity ward," the nurse told them.

Gage took Sydney's hand in his and kissed it, a lecherous smirk curling his lips as he said, "In that case, I'd like to reserve one of these for my bride-to-be and our first son, say in about nine months and two or three hours…give or take."

Sydney's cheeks went from pink to fire engine red and her eyes glittered with cold fire. She was _so_ not amused.

"Francis! Sit down and shut up! Or would you rather I seriously inhibit your ability to father children?" she snarled.

Gage knew he had crossed the line with Sydney. She was a very private person when it came to her emotions and she was clearly horrified that he would say something so suggestive in front of a virtual stranger. She never cried or lost control in front of anyone—except Gage and even with him it had taken her months to really open up and feel comfortable doing it.

"I'm sorry, Syd," he apologized sincerely. "Could you excuse us for a second?" he asked the young nurse.

"Certainly. I'll leave the chair here and you just come on out when you're ready," she replied and ducked quickly out the door, pulling it shut behind her.

"Syd, I know I was out of line—"

"You're damn right you were! How could you say that? You practically told that woman that we were going straight home and have sex!"

"You mean we're not?"

The second the words left Gage's mouth he wished he could take them back.

"In your dreams, partner!" she spit back at him, furious that he would assume that she would hop immediately into the sack with him the first chance she got—Oh, hell, who was she kidding? That's exactly what she wanted to do, what she'd been hoping they would do ever since last night. Still, that was supposed to be just between the two of them, not something to be joked about with strangers.

"As a matter of fact, it's been a major factor in all my dreams for a very long time, Syd. And unless I miss my guess, you've dreamed about me a time or two yourself," he said softly, his husky whisper taking the edge off her righteous indignation.

She was standing with her back to him and he risked reaching out to touch her shoulder and gently turn her around to face him. She went willingly, but kept her eyes on the floor.

"Syd, look at me."

She lifted her chin and looked him squarely in the eyes. He liked that she stood her ground with him, always had.

"I was wrong to say what I said. I guess I got carried away. It's just that I've waited so long, Syd, to tell you how I feel and to find out that you feel the same way and now we're getting married...But it still doesn't excuse what I said. If I had it do over again, I'd keep my big mouth shut. And as for us having sex the minute we get to my place, well, can we maybe cross that bridge when we come to it?" he asked with a hopeful glint in his eye.

"I'd rather set the expectation now if that's alright with you."

Her expression and her tone were unreadable. Gage had no idea where she was going with this.

"Uh…OK…what did you have in mind?"

"First, what you and I do in bed together shall be referred to now and forever as 'making love', regardless of the, uh, _intensity_ of the act, and second, unless you're already stocked up on condoms, we're stopping at a pharmacy before we go to your place. I do not intend to be back here in nine months and three hours—_eighteen _months and three hours, maybe, but not nine."

Gage's chin all but bounced off the floor. Did she just say what he thought she said?

"So, how about you get your butt in this chair, so we can blow this pop stand?" she said, looking at him expectantly and nodding toward the chair.

"Yes, ma'am!" he answered with a huge grin and a mock salute as he threw himself into the seat of the wheelchair. "And just so you know, I was planning on dropping you off at my place, so you could maybe take a shower and slip into one of my t-shirts, while I made the pharmacy run. Are you OK with that?"

By way of an answer, she sat on his lap, wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him positively breathless.

"Sounds like a plan, partner. Let's roll," she said, hopping off his lap and opening the door so he could roll himself through it.

The redheaded nurse stepped out from behind the desk and, without looking either Sydney or Gage in the eye, wheeled him without a word to the hospital entrance.

The ride from the hospital to Gage's apartment was the longest thirty-seven minutes of his entire life. In the end, they decided to stop at the pharmacy on the way there. Gage was in and out in less than four minutes. After all, Gage reasoned, he would probably want to take a shower too and there was no sense in wasting water—or time—when his shower was plenty big enough to…

_Well, let's just say they lived happily—make that Oh, God! Oh, God! OH, MY GOD! happily—ever after._

THE END.


End file.
